http://goinswriter.com/my500words/ day 3

The labor pains finally came, early in the morning. My due date had passed by 2 weeks, and it showed.  I had decided that I was going to have my baby at home, and not invite the doctor to the party. I had made the mistake of reading a book called “The Silent Knife”. It was a book on the woes of unnecessary C-Sections. Not the most recommended reading for a first time mom about to give birth! I had decided that our domestic worker, Johanna, would be my midwife. After all, she had given birth to 8 children of her own- at home.

I had assisted as moral support in 2 home births up to that point as well and decided that If they could do it, so could I!  About Mid morning my friend, Estelle, came over to see how I was doing. She was shocked to find that I was in labour!  It wasn’t long till the whole Calgary was there, all urging me to go to the hospital. I was determined to stay and have my baby at home with no running water or electricity. I had put on 35 pounds to my 100 pound body during this pregnancy and had “lived off the land” and gone by the book when it came to my diet.  Lots of Protein, Fresh veggies and fruits, and just the right amount of this and that.

22 hours later, after Michelle, one of my dearest friends from Johannesburg and her husband Wessel arrived, they conspired with Jerry and the doctor to get me to the hospital because “it just wasn’t happening”. The labour pains were 2.1/2 minutes apart for over 10 hours. I didn’t even have my bag packed. I wasn’t planning to go to the hospital! I figured all I needed was my praise music, my book on praying the scriptures and the boiled shoestring to tie off the cord!

The doctor said he wanted to take me in to break my water and see if that would help.  So down the 2 mile very bumpy, deep sand road we went, labour pains and all. Well, it didn’t help. Still not happening. So, after 22 hours of labour, they decided to do a c-section. There was only a general anesthetic, no epidural or any thing remotely similar in that small town hospital. So out I went and seconds later came our huge baby boy who was promptly handed over to his father – outside the theatre door! His life was to be one of adventure, just like his birth, we just didn’t know it at the time!

All of that proper eating produced me a 9 pound 12 ounce bouncing baby boy, 22 inches long! I woke up long enough for Jerry to tell me, as I was being wheeled out, “honey, it’s a boy (his face shining) and He’s beautiful!.” Back to zzz land and in the middle of the night I found my self awakened by the sound of a crying baby. It was dark, in the middle of the night. I just knew it was my baby so I tried to sit up to find the light, but then the realization of what took place hit me and the pain paralysed me! I was looking for a light, a buzzer, something. I then tried to speak out for someone to come, but could only whisper, evidently due to the tube they put down my throat in surgery. So, I figured all I could do was whistle. So I gave a little whistle…nothing, then I whistled a little louder.. Still nothing. Luckily, being raised in Texas on a cattle farm, I knew how to whistle LOUD.  Finally I heard a nurse coming down the corridor saying in Afrikkans, and after translation said, “ Is that someone whistling?” I was crying by this time and whispered out, “Can I see my baby?”

Immediately Jay Remick Lackey was brought in to me and I fell in love at first site! He looked to be 3 months old, he was so big but so perfect! Many adventures were ahead for this kid, but the rest of this story can be read at https://janalackey.com/2012/03/06/baboons-and-babies/